Aokigahara Suicide Forest – Koshu, Japan | Atlas Obscura Please separate multiple addresses with commas. We won't share addresses with third parties. Subscribe me to the Atlas Obscura Newsletter Called “the perfect place to die,” the Aokigahara forest in Japan has the unfortunate distinction of the world’s second most popular place to take one’s life. (The first is the Golden Gate Bridge.) Since the 1950s, Japanese businessmen have wandered in, and at least 500 of them haven’t wandered out, at an increasing rate of between 10 and 30 per year. Recently these numbers have increased even more, with a record 78 suicides in 2002. In 2003, that record was beat with a number of 105 bodies discovered. See more things to do in Japan » Japanese spiritualists believe that the suicides committed in the forest have permeated Aokigahara’s trees, generating paranormal activity and preventing many who enter from escaping the forest’s depths. Complicating matters further is the common experience of compasses being rendered useless by the rich deposits of magnetic iron in the area’s volcanic soil.

Due to the vastness of the forest, desperate visitors are unlikely to encounter anyone once inside the so-called “Sea of Trees,” so the police have mounted signs reading “Your life is a precious gift from your parents,” and “Please consult the police before you decide to die!” on trees throughout. This does not deter determined people from committing suicide in this dense forest. Annually about 70 corpses are found by volunteers who clean the woods, but many are forever lost in the very thick woods. Japanese authorities discontinued publishing exact suicide numbers in order to avoid making the place even more popular. Contemporary news outlets noted the recent spike in suicides in the forest, blamed more on Japan’s economic downturn than on the romantic ending of Seicho Matsumoto’s novel Kuroi Jukai, which revitalized the so-called suicide forest’s popularity among those determined to take their final walk. (The novel culminates in Aokigahara as the characters are driven to joint-suicide.) Locals say they can easily spot the three types of visitors to the forest: trekkers interested in scenic vistas of Mount Fuji, the curious hoping for a glimpse of the macabre, and those souls who don’t plan on leaving.

What those hoping to take their lives may not consider is the impact the suicides have on the locals and forest workers. In the words of one local man, “It bugs the hell out of me that the area’s famous for being a suicide spot.” And a local police officer said, “I’ve seen plenty of bodies that have been really badly decomposed, or been picked at by wild animals… There’s nothing beautiful about dying in there.” The forest workers have it even worse than the police. The workers must carry the bodies down from the forest to the local station, where the bodies are put in a special room used specifically to house suicide corpses. The forest workers then play jan-ken-pon—rock, paper, scissors—to see who has to sleep in the room with the corpse. It is believed that if the corpse is left alone, it is very bad luck for the yurei (ghost) of the suicide victims. Their spirits are said to scream through the night, and that their bodies will move on their own.

The Haunted Suicide Forest of Death: Aokigahara Source: Away From Normal The vast forest covers a 3,500 hectare wide area and the tree coverage in Aokigahara is so thick that even at high noon it's entirely possible to find places shrouded in complete darkness. It's also mostly devoid of animals and is eerily quiet. Hearing a bird chirping in the forest is incredibly rare. The area is rocky, cold, and littered with over 200 caves for you to accidentally fall into. The discomforting forest is known for the thickness of its trees, its twisting network of woody vines, and the dangerous unevenness of the forest floor. All of this together gives the place a very unwelcoming feeling. Personally, I love hiking and I think the forest actually looks really pretty during the daytime. However, I think the place would turn absolutely horrifying come nightfall. Who knows when you'll trip over some snarled root or jagged rock, fall down a hill and land on top of a pile of bones or a rotting corpse. No nighttime hiking in Aokigahara for me, thanks.

Further compounding the creepiness factor is the common occurrence of compasses, cell phones, and GPS systems being rendered useless by the rich deposits of magnetic iron in the area's volcanic soil. I'm sure this fact has helped propagate the legend of the forest's demonic habit of trapping visitors within it. Source: Studio 360 Besides bodies and homemade nooses, also scattered around the forest are signs put up by the police with messages like "Your life is a precious gift from your parents," and "Please consult with the police before you decide to die," in an attempt to discourage would be committers of suicide. Judging from the increasing number of suicides, these signs probably aren't all that effective. An Unfortunate Suicide Hotspot Source: Daysleeper By the 1970s the suicides had become so infamous that the Japanese government started to do annual sweeps of the forest to search for and clear out the bodies. In 2002, 78 bodies were found within the forest, exceeding the previous record of 74 in 1998. By 2003, the rate had climbed to 100.

In recent years, the local government has stopped publicizing the numbers in an attempt to downplay Aokigahara's association with suicide. In 2004, 108 people killed themselves in the forest and in 2010, 247 people attempted suicide, 54 of whom succeeded. But that's just the number they found and reported. Who knows how many more there are that just go undiscovered? I'm actually pretty surprised that I hadn't heard about the Suicide Forest until just recently. You'd think that something like this, being the number two hotspot for suicides in the world, and located right at the base of Mt. Fuji, would be more well known. Maybe it's just me. Its Effect on the Locals Source: DJStorm Nearly as unfortunate as the suicides themselves is the impact the suicides have on the locals and forest workers. One local man says, "It bugs the hell out of me that the area's famous for being a suicide spot." A local police officer said, "I've seen plenty of bodies that have been really badly decomposed, or been picked at by wild animals.

There's nothing beautiful about dying in there." It's really a shame that such a unique and interesting forest has become sullied by so many suicides. The forest workers have it even worse than the police who comb and investigate the forest. The workers are tasked with the job of carrying the bodies down from the forest to the local station, where the bodies are put in a special room used specifically to house suicide corpses. The forest workers then play janken to see who has to sleep in the room with the corpse. Talk about terrible. The reason for these strange sleeping arrangements is that it is believed if the corpse is left alone, it's very bad luck for the ghost of the suicide victim. Their spirits are said to scream throughout the night if left alone, and their bodies will get up and shuffle around, searching for company. I don't know about you, but this sounds like one of the absolute worst ways to spend a night. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if the body is just like a pile of bones, but I can't imagine how creepy it would be to sleep in a dinky little room with a fresh corpse as a roommate. To make matters worse, a few years back people started to scavenge the forest for valuables.

And by this I mean that people would search the forest for dead bodies and then loot their corpses. Talk about disrespectful, not to mention creepy. Aokigahara Documentary I also found this awesome video from Vice about one of the guys who regularly goes on suicide prevention patrols in Aokigahara. It's really interesting and definitely worth a watch if you have twenty minutes to spare. Like I said before, the suicide rate of Japan is one of the highest in the world and really shows no sign of decreasing despite government measures to discourage it. That being said, I don't really see Aokigahara becoming less of a suicide hotspot anytime soon. Destination Truth Aokigahara was also featured on an episode of SyFy's Destination Truth series because of how famous the place is for being haunted. Unfortunately, the episode itself is nothing special. It's pretty much just what you'd expect from a paranormal investigation show. Americans getting lost in the woods at night, seeing things in the shadows, and hearing whispers in the night. The best part about the episode is seeing what the place looks like at nighttime, and how easy it is to get lost there.

So, what are your thoughts on the Suicide Forest, undoubtedly one of the creepiest places in Japan? Would you want to visit and explore the forest, or would it be too scary? Would you be willing to camp overnight in the forest if someone dared you? Have you even heard of this place before? Let us know on Twitter ! Sources Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest' - CNN.com Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest' Story Highlights Forest with stunning views of Mount Fuji is also known as place to die Counselors now roam Aokigahara Forest, hoping to help the desperate Suicides in Japan were 15 percent higher in January than a year earlier Officials fear more people will kill themselves amid the tough economy By Kyung Lah CNN AOKIGAHARA FOREST, Japan (CNN) -- Aokigahara Forest is known for two things in Japan: breathtaking views of Mount Fuji and suicides. Also called the Sea of Trees, this destination for the desperate is a place where the suicidal disappear, often never to be found in the dense forest. Japan's Aokigahara Forest is known as the "suicide forest" because people often go there to take their own lives.

Taro, a 46-year-old man fired from his job at an iron manufacturing company, hoped to fade into the blackness. "My will to live disappeared," said Taro. "I'd lost my identity, so I didn't want to live on this earth. That's why I went there." Taro, who did not want to be identified fully, was swimming in debt and had been evicted from his company apartment. He lost financial control, which he believes to be the foundation of any stable life, he said. "You need money to survive. If you have a girlfriend, you need money. If you want to get married, you need it for your life. Money is always necessary for your life." Taro bought a one-way ticket to the forest, west of Tokyo, Japan . When he got there, he slashed his wrists, though the cut wasn't enough to kill him quickly. Need to talk to someone? Web site: Befrienders Worldwide He started to wander, he said. He collapsed after days and lay in the bushes, nearly dead from dehydration, starvation and frostbite. He would lose his toes on his right foot from the frostbite.

But he didn't lose his life, because a hiker stumbled upon his nearly dead body and raised the alarm. Taro's story is just one of hundreds logged at Aokigahara Forest every year, a place known throughout Japan as the "suicide forest." The area is home to the highest number of suicides in the entire country. Japan's suicide rate, already one of the world's highest, has increased with the recent economic downturn. There were 2,645 suicides recorded in January 2009, a 15 percent increase from the 2,305 for January 2008, according to the Japanese government. The Japanese government said suicide rates are a priority and pledged to cut the number of suicides by more than 20 percent by 2016. It plans to improve suicide awareness in schools and workplaces. But officials fear the toll will rise with unemployment and bankruptcies, matching suicide spikes in earlier tough economic times. "Unemployment is leading to this," said Toyoki Yoshida, a suicide and credit counselor. "Society and the government need to establish immediate countermeasures to prevent suicides.

There should be more places where they can come and seek help." Don't Miss Special: Mental health Yoshida and his fellow volunteer, Norio Sawaguchi, posted signs in Aokigahara Forest urging suicidal visitors to call their organization, a credit counseling service. Both men say Japanese society too often turns a cold shoulder to the unemployed and bankrupt, and breeds a culture where suicide is still seen as an honorable option. Local authorities, saying they are the last resort to stop people from killing themselves in the forest, have posted security cameras at the entrances of the forest. The goal, said Imasa Watanabe of the Yamanashi Prefectural Government is to track the people who walk into the forest. Watanabe fears more suicidal visitors will arrive in the coming weeks. "Especially in March, the end of the fiscal year, more suicidal people will come here because of the bad economy," he said. "It's my dream to stop suicides in this forest, but to be honest, it would be difficult to prevent all the cases here." One year after his suicide attempt, Taro is volunteering with the credit counseling agency that helped him get back on his feet. He's still living in a shelter and looking for a job.

He's ashamed, he said, that he still thinks about suicide. "I try not to think about it, but I can't say never. For now, the will to live is stronger." Aokigahara Forest - Aokigahara Aokigahara Aokigahara is a forest that lies at the base of Mount Fuji, less than 100 miles west of Tokyo. Locally, it is also known under the name of Jukai ("Sea of Trees") because of its very high density of trees. It is also very sought-after by tourists because there are two caves located here, The Ice Cave and the Wind Cave. It is a unique forest in many ways; there is barely any wildlife in here, thus it is very quiet, making it a popular destination among locals. However, this quietness hides a more macabre side of it as the Aokigahara is the number one suicide spot for Japanese. Its quietness has attracted people to consider it haunted, and there are plenty of Japanese who would not dare to enter the forest. This resulted in even more myths surrounding Aokigahara.

Ice Cave Entrance, Aokigahara But even if you are not attracted to ghost stories, the truth is, the place has a special feeling to it. When you enter it, there are signs in both Japanese and English preventing people against a suicide. One sign at the entrance reads: "Your life is something precious that was given to you by your parents" while another one states "Meditate on your parents, siblings and your children once more. Do not be troubled alone." The exact number of suicides committed here in a year is unknown as the police discontinued publishing this data. The last time it was made public was in 2003, when 105 confirmed suicides took place. Here is a graph showing the data between 1998 and 2003: This data is the official one. It is believed that annually more people die here, but their corpses are never found in the thick forest. It is hard to make a profile of the average person who commits suicide in the forest, but they are usually males between 40 and 50 years, and the biggest month for suicides is March, possibly because March is the end of the fiscal year in Japan.

So many people come from all over Japan to end their stressful lives here as they feel it's is the perfect location in which to breathe their last. It is baffling why there is such a high rate in the country but it has something to do with the Japanese psyche and that many Japanese men feel rejected when retrenched. Some of them had held important positions in their respective companies, including that of chief executive officers. Unable to face their families and loved ones, they perhaps, in the manner of the samurai warriors of the past, felt that suicide is one way to atone for their failures. The Aokigahara has not always attracted hundreds of people wishing to end their lives. While there is some evidence that suggests that as far as the 19th century, it was a place where Japanese carried their elders to die of starvation (a practice called ubasute), it became popular after the 1960’s when a novel by famed author Seichō Matsumoto was published. In this novel called "Tower of Waves", a couple commit suicide in the Aokigahara forest.

Another book from 1993, “The Complete Manual of Suicide” by Wataru Tsurumi added to the fuel and increased suicide rates. The author described the Aokigahara as the perfect place to commit suicide and even described which parts of the forests are less circulated so the bodies cannot be found later on. An annual body sweep is organized before the holiday season in which the found dead bodies are removed and, where possible, identified. Warning Sign The Mysterious Suicide Forest of Japan | Mysterious Universe The Mysterious Suicide Forest of Japan Brent Swancer There are some places on this Earth that just seem to be cursed. For whatever reason, these insidious locations are infused with an almost palpable evil that pervades the landscape and creeps into the mind. Among these forsaken habitats of menace, we can find some that hide amongst some of the world’s most gorgeous landscapes; places of coiled evil waiting to pounce whilst shrouded in natural beauty. At the foot of Japan’s iconic Mt. Fuji, lying sprawled amongst some of the most majestic scenery in Japan, is one such place.

At the base of this picturesque mountain lies the haunted destination of broken souls known as Aokigahara, often referred to as the “Sea of Trees” and more infamously as the demon infested “Suicide Forest.” Aokigahara Forest Aokigahara Forest lies at the northwest base of Mt. Fuji, which looms overhead with its majestic peak. It is a starkly beautiful landscape renowned for its breathtaking scenery and vistas. The forest itself is approximately 35 square km (14 square miles) in area and from a distance seems like an idyllic, pristine wilderness area. However, looks can be deceiving. The moment one steps into Aokigahara, it quickly becomes apparent that something is slightly off about the place. The first thing one may notice is the disconcerting silence here. The density of of the closely packed trees blocks the sun and wind, producing a dark, eerie blanket of quiet, which is further compounded by the curious lack of wildlife in the area. The sounds of birds and other wildlife that one might expect to hear chirping and chattering in abundance are oddly absent or subdued, as if they have shunned this place or are hiding from something.

Some have described the quality of sounds here as somewhat muted, as if being heard through a thick veil or from another room. One may also notice that compasses do not work properly here. The needle may jerk and jump about spasmodically, or conversely do slow, languid circuits around and around. It is said that this is caused by magnetic anomalies induced by the rich deposits of magnetic iron in the area’s volcanic soil, yet the disorienting effect of the forest goes beyond merely rendering compasses useless. Many hikers that venture into Aokigahara, even experienced ones, claim that it is oddly easy to get lost or confused in this dark and silent place. It is not uncommon to hear stories of hikers inexplicably traveling around in circles, or of being unable to navigate even short distances successfully. This bizarre effect has led to many visitors planting markers or plastic tape in order not to lose their way. One may also become aware of the bizarre and creepy litter strewn about the forest floor. Pairs of shoes, both for children and adults, lined up upon moss covered, gnarled logs. A packet of entirely mundane photographs, song lyrics scrawled upon the envelope, lying forgotten and untouched amongst the underbrush.

A child’s doll lying wide eyed atop the twisted roots of a tree, its vacant eyes staring up as if trying to peer through the crooked branches above that blot out the sky. One can find a plethora of such odd trinkets and abandoned items interspersed among the trees. These items seem jarring and out of place here on the forest floor of this otherwise pristine wilderness, and only serve to add to a growing sense of foreboding. Regardless of such eery occurrences, many tourists still visit the area to see the magnificent scenery and the numerous rocky caverns scattered throughout the forest. Many of these caverns are dangerous to the unwary, and warning signs are a common sight interspersed amongst the thick trees, yet large numbers of visitors still brave the trek to see them every year. Above and beyond the unsettling elements of the forest, there is an even darker side to Aokigahara. In addition to those brought here for the scenic beauty, caverns, and hiking, there are also the droves of poor, lost souls who come here every year to die.

Often referred to rather morbidly as “The perfect place to die,” Aokigahara is said to be the most popular place to go to commit suicide in Japan and the second in the world after The Golden Gate Bridge in San Fransisco. Since at least the 1950s, the forest has attracted ever growing numbers of people who come to the solitude here for their final breaths, with 2003 seeing a record number of 108 suicides. These are only the bodies that are found by monthly patrols and annual “body hunts,” in which police and volunteers scour the forest for victims. It is said that this number is likely even higher due to the remoteness of some of the areas within the forest, the numerous caves, crevasses, and caverns, and the forest’s ability to quickly and thoroughly decompose remains. Some of the bodies of these victims are stumbled across by visitors to the area, who while hiking through the otherwise beautiful wilderness may happen across the horrific sight of a corpse hung from a tree or a skeleton with its legs poking out of the dense foliage on the forest floor.

It is difficult for police and volunteers to locate all of the dead hidden away within this dark wood, or to accurately estimate how many have died. The only thing that seems to be known for sure is that every year the number of those who come to Aokigahara to die seems to be increasing. Those looking to end their lives here have become so common that locals say they can easily spot the three types of visitors to the forest: hikers interested in seeing the stunning vistas of Mount Fuji, curious thrill seekers hoping for a glimpse of the macabre, and those who don’t plan on returning. In an effort to end the alarming trend of people coming to Aokigahara to end their lives, certain measures have been implemented such as putting up signs throughout the area urging those who have given up hope to reconsider their actions and turn back, as well as installing security cameras and sending out police patrols. Even with such measures, it is thought that at least a hundred people a year likely meet their doom here. According to some, these lonely souls who are contemplating suicide are mysteriously and inexorably drawn to Aokigahara by supernatural forces within the forest that beckon them to come.

Some survivors of suicide attempts in Aokigahara have told of having had the vague feeling of being somehow called to or pulled towards the forest, and of having the inexplicable compulsion to make the journey there. Aokigahara is certainly not without its paranormal happenings. Even before records were kept on suicides within Aokigahara forest, the area had long been steeped in spooky lore and mythology. The dim forest was long thought to be the haunt of demons and ghosts who prowled the landscape and terrified travelers. It is also believed that it was once a popular place for the gruesome practice of ubasute, a custom in which a sick or elderly relative was allegedly abandoned in a desolate location such as a remote mountain or forest and left to die. In the case of Aokigahara, it was said that the victims of ubasate here became vengeful ghosts relentlessly prowling the twisted trees. Many believe that the suicides committed in the forest have permeated the very trees in Aokigahara, generating paranormal activity, driving away wildlife, and preventing many who enter from ever escaping the forest’s grasp.

These people say that the forlorn souls of those who committed suicide in Aokigahara are doomed to eternally inhabit its depths, trapped within the gnarled trees and forever beckoning others to join them. The reasons for wanting to end one’s life are as varied as the people who come to Aokigahara to do so, yet one thing they all have in common is that something has brought them all from their far flung lives to this particular spot to do it. What quality is it that drives them to converge here in this shadowy, quiet wilderness to carry out their morbid business? Is it simply the tranquil beauty of the place, or the privacy afforded by the low probability of encountering anyone else in such a dense and vast forest? Or are they being beckoned by demons, ghosts, vengeful spirits, or some other inscrutable evil force? Only those despairing, forgotten souls who spent their last moments in this dark quiet in the shadow of Mt. Fuji will ever know for sure. Aokigahara - the Suicide Forest | Ghosts | Fandom powered by Wikia Aokigahara - the Suicide Forest Share Aokigahara Forest below Mt.

Fuji AOKIGAHARA Forest, also known as JUKAI, the Sea of Green, is a 35-kilometre (14 sq. mi) forest that lies at the northwest base of Mt. Fuji. Aokigahara also goes by other names that are not so inviting, the most ‘popular’ being the Suicide Forest (followed by the Cursed Forest and the Black Forest). The Suicide Forest grew up on top of an old lava flow. The ground is uneven and deceptive. Often you will take a step onto something that looks firm only to find yourself tripping as your foot falls into one of the many holes on the forest floor. There are many small caves scattered about. The forest is dense and forms canopies over the forest floor. This canopy blocks the wind, and, with no insects or wildlife around, the forest is eerily quiet. Yūrei Aokigahara has been associated with death and evil spirits even before it became popular as a place for suicide. An old Japanese tradition of ubasute was said to have been practiced where the elderly and the sick were carried into the forest and left to die.

Their angry spirits, called Yūrei, haunt the forest, encouraging the suicidal people who enter to go through with their terrible urge to die. The Japanese believe that if a person dies a sudden, unnatural or violent death (such as suicide), the spirit will turn into a Yūrei. If a body is not properly buried, or if a person dies with strong, negative feelings such as depression or rage, then the spirit will turn into a Yūrei. There are a lot of angry spirits in this forest. People who have hiked through this forest have described themselves as feeling panicky and say it feels like the trees are trying to engulf them. Since the 1950’s, over 500 people have committed suicide in Aokigahara. And the body count is increasing each year. You will find lots of plastic ribbons (like police tape) snaking through the forest. The people who go into the forest thinking about suicide but are not certain they will go through with it will leave these ribbons as trails to follow back out of the forest. The majority of suicides hang themselves; the others overdose on pills. At least once a year, the local people and the Forest Rangers go into the forest to search for bodies.

They call it the Body Hunt. These searchers have reported hearing high pitched screams and wailing in this otherwise silent forest. Tourists who brave the woods take pictures and videos showing mists and orbs. There are signs posted in Japanese and in English trying to get people to reconsider their actions. “Your life is a precious gift from your parents. Please think about your parents, siblings and children. Don’t keep it to yourself. Talk about your troubles. Aokigahara (aka Suicide Forest) Trending Topics Aokigahara (aka Suicide Forest) Bordering the famed Mount Fuji in Japan is a dark, sinister forest known as Aokigahara, or “The Sea of Trees.” Although from the outside it looks like your typical, run-of-the-mill forest, the inside is an entirely different story. Aokigahara is the perfect place to set a horror movie, as it has become the second most popular location (the Golden Gate Bridge is currently ranked number one) for wary travelers to shuffle off this mortal coil by their own hands. The forest has become so legendary as a prime suicide location that several signs have been erected and drilled into the trees pleading with travelers to reconsider making the Sea of Trees their final resting place.

Others who choose to explore the supposedly haunted forest simply for the thrill of it may run the risk of coming across some of the many corpses there that have yet to be discovered. Its haunted reputation stems not just from its sinister nature but from the legends that surround suicides in Japanese mythology. According to Japanese lore, those who leave this earth in a way deemed unnatural are doomed to remain on earth as wandering specters. When a body is found, it is placed in a bed at a forestry station located nearby, next to an empty one for a loved one. Japanese lore states that the spirit, known as a yurei, will howl and scream into the night if left alone throughout the night. The forest is mentioned in Wataru Tsurumui’s book The Manual of Suicides, and was even the subject of the 2004 movie Jyukai — The Sea of Trees Behind Mt. Fuji. Bodies are still being found there, often hanging from the trees and in varying states of decomposition. Many of those who venture into the sinister forest due to curiosity and not thoughts of ending it all can often stumble across skeletal remains and personal items, such as credit cards, wallets and rail passes.

Aokigahara Forest - The Perfect Place to Die | Oddity Central - Collecting Oddities Aokigahara Forest – The Suicide Woods of Mount Fuji By Spooky on February 14th, 2011 Category: Pics , Travel Referred to as “the perfect place to die” in Wataru Tsurumui’s bestselling book – The Complete Manual of Suicide – Aokigahara is a thick, dark forest located at the base of Mount Fuji, famous as a popular suicide spot. No one knows exactly how many bodies go undiscovered among the trees of Aokigahara forest, but the ones uncovered so far have already earned this place an eerie reputation. In 2002 alone, 78 bodies were located in Aokigahara, and by 2006, another 16 suicides were reported. Some of the victims even carried copies of Tsurumui’s book with them, which makes this even creepier. The whole place is dotted with signs that read “please reconsider!” or “please consult the police before you decide to die!” but these have little power on those determined to die here.

“We’ve got everything here that points to us being a death spot. Perhaps we should just promote ourselves as ‘Suicide City’ and encourage people to come here,” says the mayor of Aokigahara exasperated by the high number of suicides registered in the area. Locals claim they can always tell who is going into the forest to admire its natural beauty, and who isn’t planning on ever coming back. They say part of the reason people decide to commit suicide in Aokigahara forest is because they want to die at the foot of the sacred Mt. Fuji and because it’s so dense and thick that sounds from just a few kilometers inside can’t be heard outside the woods. Aokigahara is considered the most haunted place in all of Japan, where the unsettled ghosts known as “yurei” howl their suffering on the winds. The noises heard here might be considered natural in any other forest, but knowing the reputation of this place, people tend to freak out at the sound of squeaky branch. Of course, the scary stories about the trees themselves being filled with evil energy accumulated from centuries of suicides don’t help much either.

Spiritualists go as far as to say the trees don’t want you to go back out of the forest. Legends say there are massive iron deposits underneath the forest that cause compasses and other navigation gadgets to go haywire trapping both suicidals and innocent visitors. While Japan’s Self Defense Force, who regularly trains in Aokigahara says its military grade tools work just fine, they admit pretty much all commercially available equipment doesn’t. As spooky and haunted as these suicide woods may be, they still have to be taken care of by regular forestry workers. Occasionally, they stumble upon dead bodies in various states of decomposition, usually hanging by trees or partly eaten by wild animals, but instead of running the other way screaming, they are brought to a nearby station. Here they are deposited in a spare room with two beds in it – one for the body and the other for someone to sleep next to it. The Japanese believe that if left alone, the unsettled yurei will scream all throughout the night and move into the regular sleeping quarters, so the workers play rock-paper-scissors to determine which one will sleep with the body.

Now that’s what I call a tough job… Aokigahara: The Suicide Forest In Japan - Verge Campus Aokigahara: The Suicide Forest In Japan Penn State The most haunted forest in Japan. When tourists visit Japan, one of the “must-go” destinations is Mount Fuji. Mount Fuji is the tallest mountain in Japan, known for its exceptionally symmetrical cone that’s snow-capped several months a year. It is the most famous symbol of Japan and is frequently depicted in all kinds of art forms including photography, painting, sculpture, etc. However, Aokigahara, a 35-square mile forest that lies at the northwest base of Mount Fuji, is the most popular suicide location in Japan. This forest is also known as the Sea of Trees (Jukai) because of its dense plantation. Since the rate of suicide in this area is particularly high, local officials placed a wooden sign at the entrance of the forest. The sign is written in Japanese: “Your life is a precious gift from your parents.

Please think about your parents, siblings and children.” “There are people who come here to end their lives in Aokigahara Jukai but, uncertain as to where exactly the forest is, kill themselves in neighboring woodland,” said Masamichi Watanabe, chief of the Fujigoko Fire Department that covers this area. The most common means of suicide in the forest are hanging or by inhaling toxic gas in their cars, either from the exhaust or charcoal-burners they bring with them. In the forest, you can find tapes of different colors wrapping around trees. People who are still indecisive about dying wrap tape on tree trunks along their way, so that they can still find a path out if they change their mind. There are also many tents scattered in the forest with leftover belongings in them. Some people need to spend a few days figuring out if they really want to die or not. In 2003, 105 bodies were found in the forest, exceeding the previous record of 78 in 2002. And the number is still increasing. It is believed that more people than those on record die here annually, but their corpses are never found because of the high density of the forest.

The government stopped recording suicides in this area after 2003, though we can see there is a drastic increase since as early as 2001. An annual body sweep is organized before holiday seasons. Police and volunteers come into the forests and look for dead bodies, remove them and identify them if possible. Suicide in the nation Japan has one of the leading suicide rates in the whole world. According to the latest report from the world suicide prevention organization, 19.4 people commit suicide for every 100,000 people in Japan. This rate is almost twice as high as the rate in the United States—10.1 out of 100,000. In 2014 on average, 70 Japanese people committed suicide every day, equating to almost one suicide every 15 minutes. Japanese suicide rates sky rocketd following the Asian economic crisis in the late 1990s. In 1998, the rate rose by 35%, and total deaths have remained above 30,000 a year ever since. Why do people commit suicide?

According to the National Police Agency, financial motivations contribute to about 25% of all suicides. Many of them are described as “inseki-jisatsu”, which means “responsibility-driven suicides.” Japan remains a patriarchal society with strong familial and social expectations on males. The economic crisis back in the 1990s created a huge negative impact on the Japanese society as a whole and left men in particular struggling to cope with job insecurity or the stigma of unemployment. In a predominantly patriarchal society, failure to provide for one’s family puts a lot of stress on men’s shoulders. In Japan, suicide is not considered to be a sin, as it is sometimes seen in Christian culture. On the contrary, suicide has been recognized as a noble act since ancient history in Japan. It was once frequently practiced among Samurais who failed to live up to their responsibilities. Committing suicide is a method of preserving one’s honor, and allows one to be respected and honored even by their enemies. Although Samurai principles are not practiced in modern society anymore, the mindset is still apparent. Most consider suicide as not just a way to free oneself from pain, but also a way to release families from tying with such “failure”.

Suicide prevention and a change in culture A major change took place around 2005 and 2006, when people started to look at suicide as a social problem. In May 2005, the nongovernmental organization LIFELINK, organized the very first forum on suicide. Their viewpoint is that suicide is preventable and, if proper action is taken, there is a huge chance that some people can gain back their hope for life. In 2006, the members of the House of Councillors from majority and minority parties decided to promote suicide prevention as a national policy. They later published “Basic Act for Suicide Prevention”, with the purpose of promoting suicide prevention and helping the relatives of people who die by suicide. Ever since this act was created, suicide rates among middle-aged men and the elderly are decreasing. “We are still behind in suicide prevention activities for the younger generation,” notes Dr. Tadashi Takeshima, director of Japan’s Centre for suicide prevention at the National Institute of Mental Health. “We need to strengthen support for youth by improving their educational and working environments.”

Question: Aokigahara forest in Japan is noted as a place where many people go for what purpose?
Answer: Commit suicide